Questions about the Devil, Satan
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Where did the Devil come from? Is he a fallen angel? Why is he evil?
The word Devil means “false accuser” or “slanderer.” The word Satan means “adversary.” In the Bible, the two names refer to the same being (Revelation 12:9, 20:2). Peter writes, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8). The Devil, who is Satan, is a real person who threatens God’s people. Where did he come from?
Oddly enough, there is not a single scripture that says that the Devil or Satan was once an angel, although some seem to imply that that may have been the case. Second Corinthians 11:14 says that Satan can take the appearance of an angel. In Matthew 25:41 and Revelation 12:9 the Bible says that the Devil has angels that serve him. The word “angel,” however, just means “messenger.” In other words, Matthew 25:41 and Revelation 12:9 could be talking about the Devil and his messengers as opposed to referring to what we commonly think of as angels.
God must have created the Devil/Satan at one point because, in many places, the Bible says that God is the creator of all things (John 1:3, 1 Corinthians 8:6, Ephesians 3:9). Colossians 1:16 says, “For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him.”
The next question is, “Did God create the Devil evil?” God cannot create anything that is evil. In James 1:17 we read, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” The Devil must have been good when God created him. So, how did the Devil become evil? Second Peter 2:4 and Jude 1:6 suggests that some of God’s angels were created good and then chose to do that which is wrong. Peter says that God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them into chains of darkness. Jude says, “And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.” Satan also was created good and then sinned and fell. However, unlike these angels that sinned and fell, the Bible indicates that Satan was the first one to do this. In John 8:44 Jesus says that the Devil is the “father” of lies. This indicates that he was the first one to tell a lie. The Devil was the first created being to sin.
So what is the Devil? Was he an angel or something else? The Bible indicate that there are other heavenly beings besides angels. Michael is called an archangel in Jude 9 indicating that there are certain positions of authority among the angels. The Bible speaks of Cherubim some fifty-seven times. These were the heavenly beings that God told Moses to put on the Ark of the Covenant (Exodus 25:18). The Bible speaks of Seraphim in Isaiah 6:2 and Isaiah 6:6. Ezekiel describes some types of “living creatures” in Ezekiel 1 that appear to be a heavenly creation of God. Satan could have been among these beings when he was created.
One problem is that we don’t know what God originally intended for Satan to be. Deuteronomy 29:29 says, “The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law.” God does not answer all our questions about Satan, but he does reveal that he is our enemy and that Satan is working against God’s plans for man’s salvation. Satan is trying to destroy us and we should take heed to what the Bible does say about him.
Are Isaiah 14:12 and Revelation 9:11 talking about the Devil?
Isaiah 14:12 reads in the King James Version, “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!” Many have taken the word “Lucifer” to refer to Satan. Modern culture accepts this word as being synonymous with Satan. However, modern culture is not the standard of truth. Just because society accepts the word Lucifer to refer to Satan does not necessarily mean that this is referring to Satan. The American Standard Version seems to correct the KJV in this passage. It reads, “How art thou fallen from heaven, O day-star, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, that didst lay low the nations!” Instead of “Lucifer,” they translate it “day-star.” This is the better translation, and most modern translations do the same.
Where did the idea of Lucifer as Satan first get started? Smith’s Bible dictionary says that a man named Jerome first taught this. He lived from 331 A.D. to about 420 A.D. He was best known for translating the Old and New Testaments into Latin. This version became known as the Latin Vulgate. He completed it in 405 A.D. The Latin Vulgate was the predominant translation used for over 1000 years. It was not until the reformation that the Bible was translated into other languages (such as English and German), but the Latin Vulgate still influenced these translations. The King James Version translators chose to use the Latin word “Lucifer” for their translation. That is how we got the word “Lucifer” in the King James Version of the Bible.
Was Jerome’s interpretation of this verse correct? Is it talking about Satan? There is no indication that Isaiah is speaking about anyone except whom he specifically identifies. Isaiah 14:3, 4 says, “And it shall come to pass in the day that the LORD shall give thee rest from thy sorrow, and from thy fear, and from the hard bondage wherein thou wast made to serve, that thou shalt take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say, How hath the oppressor ceased! the golden city ceased!” He specifically names the King of Babylon. Why should we take it to refer to anyone else? There is no compelling reason to believe that Isaiah was speaking about anyone else. That does not mean that Satan does not share these same attitudes. That does not mean that this passage refers to the history of Satan, his original relationship with God, and his fall. The word “Lucifer” means, “morning star” or “day-star.” This was a common name given to ancient kings to honor their position of power in the world. This name was for other ancient kings as well.
The second passage that the question poses is Revelation 9:11. This verse reads, “And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.” The Hebrew word Abaddon and the Greek word Apollyon both mean “the destroyer.” The king of this passage is in reference to the king of locusts that were released at the sounding of the trumpet of the fifth angel in 9:1: “And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit.” Is this “star” that fell the same one as the king of the locusts? The Bible says that many angels fell due to sin (2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6). What would make us think that this king is not one of them? Another angel has a key to the bottomless pit also in Revelation 20:1, but he binds the Devil. It is not clear that this being is the Devil.